Heated Rivalry is a Canadian sports romance television series created, written, and directed by Jacob Tierney for Crave. Based on the Game Changers book series by Rachel Reid, the show takes its title from the 2019 second instalment. It stars Hudson Williams as Shane Hollander and Connor Storrie as Ilya Rozanov, two professional hockey players who maintain a secret long-term romantic relationship while playing for rival teams. The series premiered on November 28, 2025, and received critical acclaim, with particular praise for Tierney's direction, the writing, and the performances and chemistry between lead actors; it also became the most-watched original series on Crave.
Heated Rivalry is ineligible for consideration at the Primetime Emmy Awards because it does not meet the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences's eligibility requirements for US co-productions. Although HBO Max later acquired the series, it became involved only after the first season had been completed, meaning the show was not developed as a US co-production from the outset. Despite its ineligibility for the regular competitive Emmy Awards, the Academy did select it for the Television Academy Honors Award, its special award for television programming that advances positive social change.
Similarly, American actor Storrie is ineligible for consideration at the Canadian Screen Awards due to a rule change that took effect at the 14th ceremony, which restricts eligibility to Canadian citizens and permanent residents. The show itself would normally have had to wait until the 15th Canadian Screen Awards in 2027 for award consideration, due to not premiering until two weeks after the eligibility cutoff date for the 2026 awards, but the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television acknowledged that the producers submitted a request for consideration under the appeals process, which was granted. Following this ruling, Heated Rivalry dominated the award ceremony, winning all of its categories, including Best Drama Series.
Awards and nominations + Award Year Category Nominee(s) Result Academy of Television Arts & Sciences 2026 Television Academy Honors Award Heated Rivalry ACTRA Montreal Awards 2026 Outstanding Performance in TV François Arnaud Sophie Nélisse ACTRA Toronto Awards 2026 Members' Choice Series Ensemble Heated Rivalry Astra TV Awards 2026 Drama Series Book to Screen Banff Rockie Awards 2026 Drama Series: English Language BMI Film & TV Awards 2026 Streaming Media Peter Peter Canadian Cinema Editors Awards 2026 Best Editing in TV Drama / Mini Series Véronique Barbe (Ep.5 – "I'll Believe in Anything") The Assistant Editor Recognition Geneviève Roberge Canadian Media Producers Association 2026 TV Producer Indiescreen Award Brendan Brady and Jacob Tierney Canadian Screen Awards 2026 Best Drama Series Jacob Tierney, Brendan Brady Best Direction, Drama Series Jacob Tierney Best Writing, Drama Series Best Photography, Drama Jackson Parrell Best Picture Editing, Drama Véronique Barbe Arthur Tarnowski Best Sound, Fiction Vincent Riendeau, Martin Messier, Joe Scandella, Natalie Fleurant, Simon Meilleur, Eric Med Lagacé, Peter Lopata and Valéry Dufort-Boucher Best Production Design or Art Direction, Fiction Aidan Leroux Best Costume Design Hanna Puley Best Visual Effects Simon Devault, Philippe Massonnat, Christophe Trepanier and Felix Arsenault Best Original Music, Drama Peter Peter Best Original Music – Original Song "It's You" Best Lead Performer, Drama François Arnaud Hudson Williams Best Supporting Performer, Drama Ksenia Daniela Kharlamova Sophie Nélisse Best Guest Performance, Drama Series Nadine Bhabha Best Achievement in Casting, Fiction Jenny Lewis and Sara Kay Cogeco Fund Audience Choice Heated Rivalry Canadian Sync Awards 2026 Best Sync - Soundtrack, Drama TV Series Heated Rivalry (Season 1) Best Sync - Scene, Episodic Series Heated Rivalry – "I'll Believe in Anything" by Wolf Parade Critics Choice Awards Celebration 2026 Showrunner Award Jacob Tierney Dorian TV Awards 2026 Best TV Drama Heated Rivalry Best LGBTQ TV Show Best Written TV Show Most Visually Striking TV Show Best TV Performance – Drama Connor Storrie Hudson Williams Best Supporting TV Performance – Drama François Arnaud GALECA LGBTQIA+ TV Trailblazer Award Jacob Tierney GLAAD Media Awards 2026 Outstanding New TV Series Heated Rivalry Gold Derby TV Awards 2026Ensemble of the Year Drama Series Breakthrough artist of the yearConnor Storrie Hudson Williams Drama ActorConnor Storrie Hudson Williams Drama Supporting ActorFrançois Arnaud Robbie G.K. Drama EpisodeHeated Rivalry (Ep.6 - "The Cottage") Literary AdaptationHeated Rivalry National Television Awards 2026 New Drama The NYC LGBT Community Center 2026 Cultural Impact Award Jacob Tierney and Brendan Brady Peabody Awards 2026 Entertainment Heated Rivalry Queerty Awards 2026 Best TV Drama Best TV Performance François Arnaud Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada 2026 Breakthrough Screen Composer Peter Peter TCA Awards 2026 Program of the Year Heated Rivalry Outstanding Achievement in Drama Outstanding New Program Individual Achievement in Drama Connor Storrie Hudson Williams Webby Awards 2026 Entertainment, General Social Heated Rivalry Social – Bell Media Television & Film, General Social Best Social Campaign, General Social Best Community or Fan Engagement – Media/Entertainment, Social Features Heated Rivalry: Hudson Williams vs. Connor Storrie – Razorfish Television & Film, Social Features
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